As we work to bring even more value to our audience, we’ve made important changes for those who receive Ad Age with our compliments. As of November 15, 2016 we will no longer be offering full digital access to AdAge.com. However, we will continue to send you our industry-leading print issues focused on providing you with what you need to know to succeed.

If you’d like to continue your unlimited access to AdAge.com, we invite you to become a paid subscriber. Get the news, insights and tools that help you stay on top of what’s next.

Kids in the Kitchen

The harried pace of single-parent or two-income households often
leaves kids to fend for themselves. So more and more of them are
donning aprons and preparing meals-and that spells opportunities
for marketers.

Some 88 percent of kids ages 6 to 17 said they occasionally made
something to eat, mostly snacks (75 percent) and breakfast (66
percent), according to a Nickelodeon/Yankelovich Youth Monitor
survey. But 51 percent of respondents also make lunch at times, and
31 percent said they make dinner. Even the youngest respondents
rolled up their sleeves once in a while: 75 percent of
6-to-8-year-olds said they've fixed meals; 9 percent claimed to
have made dinner, though most, 60 percent, said they fix
snacks.

Some 48 percent of youngsters in 1999 counted making meals for
themselves among activities they do around the house most of the
time, up from 40 percent in 1995. And 26 percent said making meals
for the family was something they did most of the time, up from
just 15 percent in 1995. Some 35 percent of respondents said they
often check labels for calorie counts or fat content.

More important to marketers, 92 percent said they either like or
do not mind preparing their own meals, citing the ability to choose
food they like, the fun of cooking, and the flexibility of eating
when and as much or as little as they want.

The opportunity lies in making cooking easy, fun and
educational. "Help kids develop 'cooking smarts' by providing tips
on reading labels, calculating measurements, and following
recipes," the survey recommends.